An Italian judge has suspended a court order to remove crosses from schools after an education ministry appeal. The original order to take down the Christian symbol came in response to a complaint by a radical Muslim leader. It caused widespread outrage in mainly Roman Catholic Italy, where a Fascist-era law still requires state schools to display the cross. The local mayor has ordered the school to remain shut until next Tuesday to protect children from media interest. Last week's ruling in the central Italian town of L'Aquila upheld a complaint by Muslim leader Adel Smith, who petitioned for a cross to be removed from his son's primary school in Ofena. Even though moderate Italian Muslims distanced themselves from Mr Smith - who leads the small Muslim Union of Italy - Italian politicians and Church leaders condemned the original ruling. On Friday, Pope John Paul weighed in, saying that taking down religious symbols could cause instability and conflict. "The recognition of the specific religious patrimony of a society requires the recognition of the symbols that qualify it," he told a meeting of political leaders of European Union police forces. Taking them down "in the name of an incorrect interpretation of the principle of equality" could lead to "instability and even conflict", the pontiff said in Rome.
Now the presiding judge has used his discretionary powers to temporarily suspend the original ruling. He has invited the parties to a new hearing on 19 November. Mr Smith is under police protection after neo-Nazis threatened him. |